


Cycles of Fear

by Evilsforreals



Category: League of Legends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:21:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23579101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evilsforreals/pseuds/Evilsforreals
Summary: Karma is summoned to a village to investigate a brutal death
Comments: 3
Kudos: 30





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> With the new Fiddlesticks out, I really wanted to incorporate his new lore and add on to Karma! Hope you enjoy!

“No! Help!” 

The small child scrambled to her feet, flying down the worn forest path, kicking up clouds of dust behind her. Her breathing came in small ragged gasps, as she swatted twisted branches away with a terrified manic energy. “Momma! MOMMA!”

“ _ NooOooo…..hhhheEEEllpppp….” _

Her blood ran cold. It was her own voice she was hearing behind her but….not her voice. Twisted, grating, like a muffled scream dragged through a dry thicket. Somewhere nearby, a crow cawed, a long raspy warning.

“ _ mmmmOmmmma…….mMOOOOMMMMMAAAAAAA!” _

“NO!” 

Darha awoke, thrashing in her bed; her heart drumming a beat of terror. Her eyes darted around the room, searching for the threat, the voice, the monster that plagued her nightmares. The lamp was dim, casting a pale golden glow over the sparsely decorated bedroom. A rough-hewn oak desk and chair sat in the corner, with a small mirror and clay jug of water. And against the wall to her left, her mantle rested, the shards of iridescent jade perpetually rotating, twinkling in the soft lamplight. No monster. Not here. Not now.

She closed her eyes, and took a steadying breath. Slowly, her heart began to slow. She shuddered, moving to wipe the bead of sweat from her brow. This was the third night this week.

Slowly, the Ionian rose from her bed, and moved to the desk. She took a quick sip of water, before pouring a dribble onto her hands, splashing her face with the cool droplets.  _ You are safe. It was a dream. Nothing more.  _

But it had felt so  _ real... _ she had dreamed countless lifetimes worth throughout her reincarnations; dreams of laughter, confusion, heartache, and many untold nightmares. But this one felt different. She could smell the pungent odour of the rotting forest; feel the wind softly blowing through her hair as she ran down that path. And she felt as if she knew that path; where it was headed. But that voice, that overwhelming sense of fear….

“My lady?”

Darha turned, jolted from her reflections. “Who’s there?”

“Just Elder Vanaya, my Karma,” the muffled voice spoke from behind the door. “I did not wish to wake you, but there is a matter that you must be informed of.”

The tone was soft and deferential, but Darha could feel two emotions hidden behind the genuflection. Disappointment, which was no surprise to the spiritualist ever since Karma had unleashed her power on the Noxians. And the other emotion was….unease...or was it fear?

Darha quickly donned her robe, and gestured towards the wall. The mantle silently spun from its place, affixing itself into a set position in the air directly behind Darha’s head as she opened the door. Elder Vanaya bowed reverently, before turning and moving down the hallway.

The spiritualist and elder walked in relative silence down the simple stone hallways, illuminated by the iron torches interspersed every few steps, and the soft green glow from the Twin Dragons.

“Is it more Noxians?”

“Thankfully no, my Karma. You will not need yet to deviate any further from your path.” Again, the tone was nothing but respectful but the words carried a harsh sting.

Darha sighed inwardly to herself. She shouldn’t have expected anything else from the Elders. For all of their wisdom, they had proven to be quite inflexible on her decisions so far as Karma. She respected their perspective, but it would not sway her conviction.

The corridor abruptly opened up into a larger chamber. A roaring fireplace marked the center of the amphitheater, surrounded by stone seats; seats already filled by the other elders. Darha’s face did not betray any questions behind the gathering of the high elders, and simply stepped towards her seat, reclining into the cold stone.

“Wisdom and Harmony,” the spiritualist said, dipping her head in respect.

“Peace and Order,” the elders replied, their words echoing off the stone walls.

“What matter is at hand?” 

“There has been a death in the village nearby,” Vanaya answered.

Darha tilted her head questioningly. “Were they ill or injured? If they had been in need of aid I could have been summoned to offer aid-”

The elder bluntly cut across Darha. “It was not a death, but a murder.”

Another elder raised their voice from the circle, speaking in a wavering voice. “They were murdered in the forests near the town of Omikayalan.”

  
  
  
  


_ “No! Help!” _

Something about those words, Darha felt goosebumps form on her arms. She turned to Vanaya. “You would not have asked for this audience if this was a simple matter of brigands. What was the nature of the murder?”

The elder shook her head. “Unlike anything that the local fauna are capable of. Luonn Kon, Scaled Snappers, Vulkodalk; they may occasionally attack and kill, but it is simple defensive/predatory nature. None of them kill like this one. The closest comparison would be The Golden Demon.”

Darha could not help but grimace at the sound of that name.  _ Jhin;  _ that depraved excuse for a man murdering countless innocents in an effort to capture ‘art.’ “Khada is still imprisoned in Tuula, no?”

Vanaya nodded. “We received confirmation just before calling you, my Karma. He is still secured, and could not be the cause of this.”

Darha nodded. “I will travel to Omikayalan. I can tether to the remaining fragments of the poor souls spirit. Perhaps there I will be able to discover the culprit.

“With all due respect my Karma,” another elder wheezed in a reproachful tone, “we merely request that you help the spirit to find peace. Revenge is against our way. It has been against our way for untold millenia, until-”

“Until I broke tradition to protect our people from the Noxians,” Darha stated plainly, cutting off the elder. “I understand your concern, but I do not have the same concern. I will do what I see is necessary to aid in this time.”

“Of course my Karma,” Vanaya said, a tinge of sadness in his voice. “Do you require an escort to Omikayalan, or will you journey alone?”

Darha shook her head. “I will need no escort. But I am never alone.”


	2. Chapter 2

The journey to Omikayalan took roughly a day and a half along a busy section of road; inns, shops, and homes were always visible along the road. Darha always noted the varied reactions she would get from the villagers as she passed them in the road. It was always a roll of the dice. 

A nobleman muttering an expletive under his breath in passing, while a small child points in wonder at the circling dragons. A merchant woman shakes her head disapprovingly while the innkeeper bows and refuses payment for her meal. This continued to drive home Darha’s conviction; She was Ionian just like them, some agreed with her, and others did not. The elders were not the only voice in this land.

At dinner, she couldn’t help but smile to herself thinking of what the other people at the inn were seeing. Her twisting mantle casting a strange artificial hue over the dining hall, and taking up the space of two chair spans as it spun in the air uncomfortably close to the soup cauldron. Thankfully the inn was not filled to the brim, and all were able to sit and eat comfortably.

“Is it heavy?”

Darha turned to see a small girl with dark curly hair and bright blue eyes peeking at her from the table over. A small finger was pointing at the intertwining jade dragons circling behind her. The girl's mother blushing a deep crimson, moved to snatch her daughter's hand, but Darha smiled and beckoned the girl.

“Is what heavy, my dear?”

“Your dragons.”

Karma tipped her finger, and the mantle smoothly moved from behind her head, still rotating in the air. The dragons were completely identical, carved by the masters of the Lasting Altar millenia ago. Every detail, from the sharp fangs to the lustrous scales seemed to exude life itself. It floated towards the girl, and a soft warmth spread across the dining room.

“Yes, the mantle is quite heavy. But it follows wherever I go. I carry it but it does not touch the ground. Do you know what’s inside?

The little girl shook her head, eyes wide.

Karma skimmed her fingers over the elegant carved dragons.“Memories. Good and bad, joy and disappointment. Many many memories over the years all live on inside the dragons to help me.”

The girl looked up at the ceiling, face scrunched in concentration. “Then….will I be a good memory in there, someday?”

Darha cupped the small child's face in her hands. “My child, you already are.”

_________________________________________________________________

  
  


That night, the nightmare returned, more potent than ever.

She was sprinting down that winding forest path again. The cold night wind blowing her hair. The cloying scent of plant rot in her nostrils. And the fear in her heart, hearing her own voice calling out behind her.

“ _ MOoooooooMMMMMMA wwwhEeeEre aaaaAAAARE YYYYYoooooOOOOUUUUuuuuu” _

Beyond the screams from behind, She could hear countless nails scraping along the ground, fabric whistling and tearing against branches and other sharp things hidden in the shadow of night. It was gaining on her, inch by inch. She could feel it just behind her, closer, closer-

“ _ Lath Rian Oune Vi!” _

Darha’s eyes sprang open as a burst of magic erupted around her. The wall of her room disintegrated as her Mantle roared with spiritual energy. The excess of the blast spiraling into the night sky, leaving trails of emerald sparks in its wake.

Darha gasped, heart racing once again. But this was much more visceral than the nights before. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong.

The inkeeper burst through the doorway, candle clutched haphazardly in his hand. “By the lands, what happened here?” he gasped.

Darha had not yet recovered her composure, her senses searching for the threat that had felt so urgent but had now evaporated into the night. The air glimmered as a barrier formed around the spiritualist, and the inkeeper. “There is something near.”

Seconds felt like hours as Darha tensed for battle. But there was no rustling from the trees. No nails, no fabric, no guttural moan of echoed words. At long last, Karma gave in, and dropped her protection, letting the barrier dissipate. She turned to survey the damage of her first attack. The blast had burned a huge hole in the wall, where the moonlight now poured in. 

“Please, accept my apologies,” Darha murmured as her hand traced the jagged edges of cedar. “I will repair this damage, and then will leave.”

The innkeeper nodded dumbly, and slowly backed out of the room, shutting the door and quickly retreated down the hallway.

Darha closed her eyes, feeling her feet leave the earth as she began to float; preparing to enter the trance of spirits.

Her query reverberated through the sea of consciousness she shared as she began her search. Down through the past reincarnations, she searched for one who could aid her. Not Jagkri, the Karma before her; he had excelled in the arts of clairvoyance and communication across vast distances. Not Ovoon, the timid little girl from the outer reaches of Ionia that could calm the raging hate in any heart. Not Alora, the wildly confident woman always brandishing several intricately embossed fans, weaving offense and defense into her magic.

There was still resistance. Ever since the Noxian encounter, the spirit trance was always a struggle, as many of the past reincarnations tried to distance themselves from Darha. It was only after the visit from Watai that the past had begun to begrudgingly acquiesce to Darha’s pleas. But she still had to work extra for them, and thus, kept her guard up, surrounding only the information needed for the task at hand, and nothing more.

Hours passed sifting through the past forms of Karma, resisting the pushes and pulls of the voices of the past, until finally she found Quos’e, a stern Karma that had developed a great love of nature, and had mastered many types of botany-based magics. With Quos’e’s guidance, Darha reached out to feel the fragments of spirit in the surrounding cedar logs. 

Her spirit merged within the Twin Dragons, and surged into the splintered wood. Slowly, the cedar logs began to grow again, piece by piece, back into its shape to restore the wall. Darha opened her eyes and surveyed her work. The cedar logs looked fresh as the day they were chopped, and the room was protected from the outside once again. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Darha attempted to apologize to the innkeeper, but he still adamantly refused payment. “These are dark times my lady; any light in the dark is a welcome gift.”


	3. Chapter 3

News of Karma must have reached the town, as the mayor was waiting at the gates to escort her when she arrived. She was dressed for battle, a thin spear clutched in her right hand. “Wisdom and harmony to you my lady,” the mayor spoke with a firm clipped voice. “Unless you had other plans, I would like to bring you directly to the scene so as to not waste time.”

“Peace and order to you,” Darha responded. “Yes, I wish to assist in any way I can.”

The mayor turned abruptly and began walking at a quick trot. Darha made quick strides to come abreast to the mayor and they continued towards a path that forked into the forest. The village was empty, not a person in sight. Somewhere nearby, a crow cawed once, the tone lingering in the afternoon air. 

Darha froze. The crow, the forest, the path. Was this the place from her dream?

The mayor had stopped, she was eyeing Darha with a look of mild curiosity. “Karma? Is something the matter?”

Darha faltered for a moment, her thoughts swimming. Was this the same forest? The same path? Was the dream a forewarning of what was to come?

No. It mattered not. She was here, and it was her duty to her people to see this through. “No mayor, please lead the way.”

The mayor nodded, and they continued. Closer and closer, they approached the trees, that suddenly felt sinister, hiding some malevolent intent-

Then the mayor turned right, walking away from the path, and towards a nearby house. Darha could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. The house looked innocent enough, a pagoda shaped roof with a heavy iron door affixed with an ornate padlock. The mayor muttered a word under her breath, and the padlock dissolved into mist. “Precautionary measure, didn’t want anyone disturbing the scene until you arrived.”

“I was told the death happened in the forest... were the elders incorrect?”

“They were correct in what information was given to them. I wanted an excuse to keep the villagers in their homes while this was sorted out. Shall we?”

Without a reply, the mayor swung the doors open. The stench hit Darha first. Rot, blood, organ, tissue. Death was here, and in none of its peaceful facets. A body was strewn upon the floor. Or what was left of one. Entrails were splayed out, draped over furniture, with scraps of skin and flesh haphazardly scattered throughout the room. 

But besides the obvious massacre of the victim, the house seemed untouched. A plate of food covered in flecks of blood and tissue sat on a table with a full glass of wine. Not a crumb or drop had been spilled. On the desk, a candle burned, next to what looked to be a letter being written. Again, besides the viscera spread along the table, everything else was untouched.

“This is how I discovered him.”

Darha looked up to see the mayor, who was doing her best to keep a tremor out of their voice. “Heard the screams, came to see and he was….like this. Fire was still burning, candle still burning and everything untouched when I locked it. No one else has been in here since.” She shook her head erratically. “It makes no sense to me, the level of brutality, but none of it spilling over into the house. It’s….it’s too clean! I don’t know how things weren’t knocked over, or a fire hadn’t started but-”

“I understand. Thank you for your help, mayor. If you would like, I will take things from here.”

The mayor's shoulders sagged with relief. “Thank you my lady, I-I will wait outside then thank you….can I get you anything in the meantime?”

Darha offered a small smile of comfort. “Thank you but that won’t be necessary. Until we know what this is, please lock the door behind me when you leave.”

The mayor looked up in surprise “But my lady, I-”

“Just to be safe, mayor.”

“I...very well. May the past protect you.”

She bowed once more before quickly exiting the scene. Darha couldn’t help but jump slightly when the iron door shut behind her. Now it was just her. Alone with death.

First, she needed more light. Darha pointed at the fireplace, and an emerald stream burst from her finger, alighting in the hearth and crackling with a soft green hue. A brief wave, and several orbs of flame swept from the fire into the surrounding torches. Now the room was fully illuminated; unfortunately that did nothing but reiterate the sheer depravity of the killing even further. 

Every corner of the room was filled with the spattering of gore, coinciding with the immaculate decoration of the furniture even further. With the room fully aglow, Darha finally located the remnants of the victims face in the wash basin-the eyes gouged out and brains clawed from the skull.

“Be at peace, I will safeguard your light.”

Now, Darha prepared herself again for the trance of spirits. This time she knew exactly who to contact; her predecessor; Jagkri and his specialization in spiritual communication. Through his tutelage, she would be able to see and feel the fragments of spirit remaining to piece together the culprit. Jagkri slowly swam to the forefront of Darha’s consciousness. His soft and kind demeanor flowed through her veins and calmed her spirit. 

She could see the flecks of spirit, lingering in the room, sparks of light floating amidst the chaos, lost pieces of a human soul. Gently, Darha probed, pushing tendrils of consciousness towards the flecks. She had done this many a time; to give families a look into their loved ones final thoughts. Sometimes regret, or anger, or confusion, but mostly contentment and love would flow from these remaining fragments, as they were the strongest emotion they were feeling at the end.

Slowly, the tendrils swirled towards the soul fragments. Soon, the mystery would be solved. Soon the-

A crow called through the stillness.

_ FEAR _

Darha shrieked and jerked back from her trance as the first fragment made contact. Pure unadulterated  _ FEAR  _ surged through her heart, an icy wave of unimaginable terror. Hands trembling, striving to maintain contact, Darha pushed towards another fragment. 

FEAR

Wave after wave of terror from the vestiges of this man’s soul-

FEAR

It was too much-

FEAR

She had to-

**FEAR**

“STOP IT!” Darha bellowed, pulling herself from the trance. The candle had gone out. The fire had gone out. She was in the dark, surrounded by silence and death and-

  
  


“ _ ssssSSSSsssssTTTOOOOoooooppppp iiiiiiIIIIIIITTTttttt” _

Darha’s heart jumped to her throat. Her voice, her words but twisted and artificial. She spun towards the voice and cast another orb of emerald flame, not caring where it landed. It struck one of the support beams and erupted, illuminating a dark shadow in the corner near the basin. “Sh-show yourself creature!” she yelled.

The shadows bulged and twisted, a scent of rotting vegetation filled the air. Darha could somehow still hear the crows outside, cawing and screeching seemingly just inches away from her ears.

“ _ aAanny liiiigHht IIiNNn tTthhE ddAarrRkkkkk isssSSs aaA wWelllllcomme gGiftTTTt” _

The innkeeper, his words, this had been following her? Stalking her on the journey-

Sharp legs and claws began poking through the shadow, ripping and tearing a rough fabric, inching closer to Darha.

**_“MmmmmmMMMMMOOOOooooMMMMMAAAAAaaaAAAAAAAA”_ **

The dream, the girl, the forest, the path. He had been there. He had always been there, following her, following-

Instinctively, Darha cast the barrier just as the creature sprung at her, eyes glowing red with sharp rusted metal teeth snapping. The creature glanced off the arcane shield, sparks flying in all driections; it was swiveling mid-air, smashing down again and again but the barrier held. Darha couldn’t think, couldn’t plan, just hold the shield. Hold it. Hold it, don’t let it in…..


	4. Chapter 4

Images began to swirl through her vision. The gaping maw of a Noxian Scuttlegeist the malevolent eyes and grasping talons, suddenly replaced by the Lasting Altar erupting into flames as the Noxian army advanced, a pointed dagger swirling through the air towards her mother-

Her fears…..it was her own personal fears...taken form and given power, given strength to destroy her.

She could feel the shield weakening. Cracks beginning to run through the twisted air flowing around her. The creature seemed to notice and began clawing at the barrier with increased gusto. Crows screamed and screeched in her ears. And she knew…..deep in her heart….if the barrier fell…..she would be lost. But the fear, the panic, it was bubbling and rising, filling Darha to the brim, she couldn’t hold on much longer……

_ Share _

  
  
  
  


_ Share it with us _

A simple command shining through the inky blackness of pure terror.

_ Share the fear _

And Darha did. The fear overflowed that small girl from the healing huts, and spilled into the visage of Jagkri. She could feel the wise sage, trying his best to assuage the waves of shadow and inky blackness. His own fears began to swirl. Darha could see his lover crumbling to the ground cursing his name, a roaring sea rushing to envelope him-

_ Share it _

More spilled over, and stern Quo’se was engulfed, a grand inferno decimating the Ghost Willow-

_ Share it all _

Alora plunged into the sea of fear, a grand celestial dragon rushing towards Runeterra, the cosmos swirling in a silent anthem of destruction-

_ Share _

All was suddenly silent. Darha looked up. She was sitting in a small meadow. A young girl was walking along a dusty path in the moonlight. A crow cawed, and the girls head swung around, her eyes wide. 

It was Ovoon; one of the very first Karmas. It hadn’t been a nightmare, it had been Ovoon, she had met this creature, eons ago. This creature-

_ “FiiiiiiiiiiidddDddleee………..sssssTiiiiiiIIIIIIIiiiiiccKsssssss” _

The creature erupted from the woods, surging towards Ovoon on a myriad of skeletal metallic limbs, guttural screams and gasps emanating from the folds of shadow.

Ovoon screamed, turning and sprinting down the dusty path. Her breathing came in small ragged gasps, as she swatted twisted branches away with a terrified manic energy. Darha chased after the two, her heart sinking. She knew now. This was no dream. And she knew how it ended.

“ _ NooOooo…..hhhheEEEllpppp….” _

The scrabbling legs drew closer to the tiny girl. The crows screaming, beating their wings against the night sky. Darha could hear Ovoon’s terror. She could feel it, taste it, touch it, this is what had killed Ovoon. This is what had brought down Karma in the past. This was- 

_ Share it _

Darha froze. And so did the scenery. Fiddlesticks continued to lunge towards Ovoon, but slower, like leaping through a stiff tar. Ovoon as well was slowing, her arms gently pumping to push herself forward and out of the creature's grasp.

_ Share _

_ What do you want from me? How can I defeat fear itself?  _ Darha cast her thoughts in to the void wildly.  _ It’s killed us before it- _

_ It killed one of us. But we are many. Have you forgotten? Do you still resist? Your fears and dreams are your own. As are ours. Share with us. Share it all. _

_ I-I betrayed the order, I broke the cycle- _

_ Do you think yourself the first of all Karma’s to defy the order? _

A scene began to materialize, the moonlit field full of crows and death dissolving into smoke and light, to show Alora composed and regal as ever, brandishing one of her trademark fans. It was darkened back alley of a crowded street. Zaun, perhaps.

“You wish to be stronger?”

A woman floated towards her, feet never quite touching the ground. A small bright bluebird circled her, chirping happily.

Alora nodded. “No one knows wind magic like you; I need to master it to better represent Ionia. Jan’ahrem, please-”

The floating woman giggled and waved her hand in admonishment. “Just Janna if you please. But I thought the illustrious Karma is meant to be a pacifist role?”

Darha stared in confusion. In her years as Karma she had seen so much of the past reincarnations, but had never seen this memory before. Alora had been confident in her abilities, with her small quirks and sass, but Darha never had witnessed this side of her, actively going against the elders.....just like....her?

Alora shook her head, looking perturbed. “The Elders see things one way. But I believe I must learn more if I am to protect Ionia. Will you help me?”

Janna cocked her head to the side, a small smile playing on her lips. She then laughed, a soft airy tune, before gliding forward and grasping Alora’s hand. “Let us begin then Karma,”

Alora shook her hand firmly, mimicking Janna’s smile. “Just Alora, if you please.”

The image began to swirl, and moments later, they were back in the moonlight glade. The scarecrow still moving at a snails pace towards Oovan.

_ Do you see it now? _

The voice was soft, but firm. Darha stared at her hands.  _ You….you kept this from me. I could have learned more, I could have been better prepared, I- _

_ You have been holding your guard against us. How can words flow freely when the dam is blocked? _

_ I…..I was afraid! I went against the principles, the elders don’t trust me now because- _

_ Because you are Karma. But because you are also human. Do you think we were above temptation? Of avarice? Lust? Fear? To be Karma is to be human, but never alone. _

Those words were the key to Darha’s final guards against the voices. From the beginning she had guarded against the voices, unknowingly muting their true voices to access what she needed. But now, the gates were thrust open, and all the experiences, all the  **human** experiences washed over her.

A gangly Karma with shifty eyes visiting the palaces of Demacia slipping an apple from a shopkeeper's stand into her robes. A stoic Karma in the foothills of Zhyunia succumbs to adultery in the dead of night, while his husband waits at home, worrying. Another Karma in the foothills near The Howling Abyss attempts and fails to hold back an avalanche caused by showboating her magic, as her friends run from their impending deaths.

Darha’s eyes filled with tears. The things she…..they had done…..

_ What is to be human, than to fall short and rise again? _

Yes, the list of wrongdoings spanned before her. But among the errors, beauty sprang.

A small flower to a crying girl. A hand to hold as a loved one slips into the unknown. A borrowed tome with a message of encouragement tucked away in a cupboard. A hug in a time of need. Darha could finally see and feel the full scope and range of what Karma was.

Karma…..was the history of humanity. In every beautiful, ugly and human experience. 

And her experience would NOT end today.

“Sae Eleisa Tera Vi Seari!”

Karma’s eyes blazed open in the small cottage. A colossal wave of energy erupted not from the Twin Dragons, but from  **her…** ..from  **them** . She twisted her fingers, and the wave spun into a thin cord of pure light, surging towards the abomination before her.

The thread connected, slamming the scarecrow into the wall, shaking the house to its core. Fear still dripped and surged through the air around her, but this was not Darha facing Fiddlesticks. 

This was Karma, confronting Fear.

Now, the energy of the dragons flowed, mixing with her own, and a grand orb of pulsing emerald magic began to coalesce, gaining more and more energy, humming with generations of power. The creature shrieked and moaned, its multitude of limbs scrabbling, stabbing, attempting to leap at her. But the cord held it firmly in place, rooting it to the floor.

“This…..this is for Oovan, creature.”

__________________________________________________________

The mayor had just been about to alert the guard over the screams from inside, when the house erupted in a burst of dazzling light. The force of the blast knocked her off her feet, as splinters of wood and iron rained down around her.

There, Karma stood, poised over the still folds of shambling metal and cloth, eyez ablaze with light, surrounded by an aura of twinkling lights.

“My lady! Are you-”

“Stay back.” 

The creature was twitching, seizing in small moments, its limbs dancing claws and jaws opening and shutting, before a small red flash of light erupted from the center of the creature. Karma gestured toward it, and another beam of light sprang forward-

But before the beam connected, it was gone in a glimmer of crimson. Just like that. Nearby, a crow cawed one low baleful tone.

Darha breathed a deep sigh, and lowered her arms. The aura began to fade, as the Twin Dragons resumed their slow lazy cycle. She extended a hand to the mayor, who took it shakily.

“Is it….is it dead my lady?”

The spiritualist shook her head. “I cannot slay fear itself, mayor. But it has left this place for the time being.”

“Fear-fear itself?” she said, voice incredulous and anxious.

Darha smiled grimly. “You cannot kill fear while humans yet exist, can we?”


End file.
